A food truck is a large vehicle that is modified to contain equipment to cook, prepare, serve, and sell meals, from simple fast foods and snacks to stunning gourmet meals. A food truck may have its own freezer, oven, an entire kitchen, or even foldable counters for customers to sit down. Food trucks are major drivers of the street food industry, serving thousands of people every day. In fact, people flock to the same places where food trucks are regularly or permanently stationed. Such places, often called food truck parks, are lively places filled with gastronomic delights, socializing, and business [...]

Pricing is one of the most challenging parts of running a food business whether it's a food truck, restaurant, or baked good. The right price on the shelf (and in turn, to stores, distributors, and brokers) determines your success. You could sell very little of a premium product and a ton of a low-priced product. The challenge? You need to know where you fall. And the strategy that's going to get you there. It took me six months to decide I wanted to test my prices. One of my mentors kept nudging me. "Test your prices! What's the worst that could [...]

Have you been approached by a daily deal site like Groupon or Living Social for your food truck or restaurant? What about a site run by a TV station or newspaper? If you have, chances are you've thought about what a daily deal would mean for your business. And maybe you've jumped at the opportunity to be featured. But, that could cause problems. Daily deals are just like any other business decision. They have to be thought about and discussed with business partners, family and friends. Then, a decision should be reached on whether or not to move forward. To [...]

When you open your own co-packing facility or starting a concession business, you could spend months Googling for used cooking equipment - searching Craigslist, eBay, YouTube, etc. You end up calling companies who don't return your phone calls because you're small potatoes to them, and when equipment arrives it's like fifty times better than Christmas. Buying equipment is terrifying and exciting. It's a BIG purchase. And it can be a day's worth of spinning your wheels if you don't know what you're looking for. Sometimes, even a single word change yields the search results you're actually looking for. Recently, I purchased [...]

Do a lot of your customers seem to purchase your products once and then dispensary? Want to create a repeat sales machine where customers are always looking for and purchasing your product? Then read on! I'm going to share with you four tips to get more loyal customers. Really, it's what has worked for me to  build an army of repeat buyers for Green Mountain Mustard. But these tips will work for any food business, including a restaurant, food truck, or cart. This past weekend we were at a craft fair in New York. We've been doing it for four [...]

Believe it or not, many food truck owners get started part-time on the weekends while holding down a full-time job. There are a lot of benefits to taking this approach. First, most of the profitable events are held during the weekends so you won't miss out on lucrative gigs. Second, it allows you to get started slowly and make mistakes without taking a big risk. In the past few weeks, I've talked with a lot food entrepreneurs who are running their business on top of a full-time job. And I'll be the first to say that it's hard. I did [...]

First off, congratulations! Getting in your first farmer’s market or fair is an amazing feeling. You get to share your food with your community and earn an income. But every event, also comes with a ridiculous amount of planning. ● What will your display look like beyond a food truck wrap? ● How will you package your product? ● How much do I sell my product for at markets? ● How much product should I bring? ● How much change should I bring? ● Are you going to have any special deals for this event? ● When do I need [...]

Let’s get started with the basics. How to find your first farmer’s market. You probably know about every farmer’s market within a 50 ­mile radius of your house. Just in case you don’t, there’s a database to look all of them up called LocalHarvest.org. But, your best resource is going to be other food truck owners already selling at farmer’s markets. They know which ones you’ll do well at ­­ and hopefully they won’t convince you to do a market you won’t do well at! If you know a food producer (how could you not these days?), send them a [...]

See if this scenario sounds familiar. Your food truck or restaurant is humming along, riding high on the wave of seasonal summer business. You’re buying new equipment, making multiple deals with new distributors, expanding your product offerings. Maybe you’re toying around with some new menu ideas, thinking of ways to expand your base of customers, and buying all of those wish-list items that have been plaguing your kitchen and staff since the day you opened. Your credit cards are all paid off, your utility bills are all current, and you start thinking that maybe, just maybe, your fledgling business is [...]

A pig roast event is a great way to bring together family and friends for a festive celebration, or as part of a local celebration event for the whole town. Often centered on a certain event in the local calendar, such as a memorial day, these events can be popular in most towns across the country, with a particular popularity in the south, where it has been closely linked to BBQ events. Even George Washington attended a barbecue hog roast during his time, an event that was noted in his journal in 1769. Whatever type of event you are organizing, [...]